smart Malaysia made its official Malaysian debut at the Electric Vehicle Expo (EVx) 2023 in Setia City Convention Centre in Shah Alam, where they had an exclusive sneak peek of its all-electric vehicle, smart #1 that was displayed on the show stand of Mercedes-Benz and smart Malaysia, for the very first time in Malaysia. smart, these days is a joint venture electric car designed and manufactured by Mercedes-Benz and Geely. This has been possible when Geely entered into partnership with Daimler (holding company for Mercedes-Benz) in 2019 and from just a very compact city car, smart is still a compact city car, but is now fully an electric vehicle brand.
The Hasttag one, or #1, as its called, is a Mercedes-Benz inspired design and cutting-edge technology, smart #1 is set to redefine the driving experience and hopes to raise the bar for electric vehicle excellence in the Malaysian market. In terms of how its styled, and engineered, I believe it could have the potential to do so. But as with most Malaysians, the price would be the key factor in making this a realisation. But this is just an unveiling of the car folks. The actual launch is scheduled for the fourth quarter of this year.
Zhang Qiang, Chief Executive Officer of smart Malaysia, expressed his overwhelming enthusiasm for this monumental milestone. He said, "The first sneak preview of smart #1 marks an incredible journey of bringing the smart brand to Malaysian soil. As we enter a new phase in Malaysia, our team has made excellent progress, and we are confident that the local market will embrace the unique, premium all-electric urban mobility experience offered by smart."
"We are thrilled to be a part of this exciting event. Whilst many EV enthusiasts are likely to have strong interest in EV technology, follow industry news, and stay informed about the latest EV developments in Malaysia, we hope our smart #1 will bring a more unique and exciting experience to the fans when they get up close and personal with smart #1" he added.
The event will showcase the winning exterior design of the smart #1, created within the global Mercedes-Benz Design network, featuring a completely new design DNA. In short, if you ended up going to the autoshow, smart Malaysia only previewed the exterior and has not shown the interior of the car there. However, this is not a car that is all-new globally as it has already been launched in 2022 in China and in Europe. So the interior shots are already available. It is just that smart Malaysia are in the midst of finalising trim options for the Malaysian market.
Key design elements include the floating panoramic halo roof, concealed electric door handles, frame-less doors, and CyberSparksLED+ Matrix Adaptive LED taillights, making a significant contribution to the unique and emotional appearance of smart #1.
So What are My Thoughts on the #1?
On a personal note, as I have already seen the car in the flesh at the media preview, I must say that the exterior looks like its a Mercedes-Benz EQA series crossover. Especially from the rear three quarter angle. The front, like most EV cars on sale today is devoid of a front grille and is basically streamlined - there is no grille as there is no front radiator needed to cool a combustion engine. So the rear has that Mercedes DNA.
Of course, it goes into the interior (which I cannot show you here at the moment. But the interior seems to have many Mercedes-Benz parts bin switchgear. Even the front seats have that Mercedes-Benz type shape to it. Actually, the car does drive like its a Mercedes EV in terms of how it rides and how it handles. So much of the DNA is in the car and I will describe this in detail at a later post.
In short, I feel that this is in many ways a Mercedes-Benz brand, but its not all of that, as it lacks that prestigious Three POinted Star badging. It looks somewhat like one but lacks that cachet and front grille. So hence, I believe that how hard hitting the smart will be is up to its pricing. But for now, the whole car looks promising inside and out.....and drives decently well too.
I will be coming up with a write up for this as soon as I can show you interior shots of the car and give you more details on this. At the moment, smart Malaysia just wants you folks to look at the exterior shots. They're keeping the interior under wraps as I said above, most likely due to the trimming and colours not finalised at the moment.
Other information and what smart Malaysia are doing to set up their sales and aftersales network...especially charging options.
The visitors at EVx 2023 had the exclusive opportunity to engage with smart's product experts, ask questions about smart #1, and experience the car in person, witnessing the revolutionary design and technology firsthand.
The company has been making significant progress in establishing a comprehensive ecosystem in preparation for the upcoming EV launch. This includes finalizing the appointment of ten dealers across key regions such as Kuala Lumpur, Selangor, Johor, Penang, Perak, Kedah and Melaka.
In addition, a strategic collaboration has been established with local EV charging service providers to ensure customer access to a wider network of Direct Current (DC) fast charging stations. This also includes the earlier collaboration with Gentari Sdn Bhd, a leading provider of clean energy solutions to install DC chargers strategically placed to ensure convenient access to fast charging stations.
Furthermore, the team is diligently conducting rigorous vehicle testing to ensure the seamless adaptation of the EV's to the unique road conditions in Malaysia. Alongside this, the development of a user-friendly mobile app, providing features like remote monitoring, charging station locations, and maintenance reminders, promises seamless connectivity and exceptional customer experience.
As the official importer and distributor of smart vehicles in Malaysia and Thailand, smart Malaysia is proud to announce that the highly anticipated smart #1 will be officially launch in Malaysia during the fourth quarter of this year. The smart #1 exterior e-Brochure is now available, and if you’re interested in registering, you can visit the smart Malaysia website at https://my.smart.com/#
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